Beatrice MacNeil travels the pathways of memory in Keeper of Tides

Reading Keeper of Tides is like delving into the diaries of the lost loved one you thought you understood.

It’s the life story of the fiery Ivadoile Spears, a fictional Cape Breton innkeeper with a flair for intimidating her staff and delighting her guests.

When we’re first introduced to Ivadoile (Iva for short), she’s 92 and teetering on the brink of dementia. She spends her days wandering around the slowly deteriorating Tides Inn, rifling through a box of old photos, and reminiscing with Margaret, a pious woman who ran the kitchen when the inn was still accepting guests.

As Iva spends more and more time reliving old memories, we get a close look at the colourful characters who passed through her life — wry Bowzer, who never travels without his parrot; young Violet, who’s trying to see as much of the world as she can within her limited time; broken Esther, who comes to the inn looking for solace; rakish Ambrose, who Iva sends away for doing a kindness; and Angelo, a former priest who finds everything he’s looking for at the inn.

Since each one of these people reacts differently to Iva, it’s these memories that give us the pieces we need to start putting together the puzzle of Iva’s life. To Bowzer, she’s a kindred spirit; to Violet, she represents a place of rest and friendship; to Ambrose, she’s a lover; and to Angelo, she’s an unpleasant crank.

But although Iva’s relationship with each one of these people shows us a different facet of her personality, there’s one experience that made her who she is, and it lies deep in her past, buried in the straw that molders in her condemned barn.

This decades-old memory dictates everything Iva does — from the way she treats her staff and her guests to how she handles her relationship with Ambrose and resists female companionship. For Iva, everything is black and white, and there are no second chances.

Which is why Margaret keeps so many secrets. The cook knew far more about what went on at the inn than Iva ever realized. And since secrets have a way of driving a wedge between people, Iva and Margaret were never able to build a friendship the way an innkeeper and her strongest asset should be able to.

Beatrice MacNeil’s writing is close to perfect — with just the right balance of atmosphere, pathos and humour, but her deft handling of Iva and Margaret’s evolving relationship is where MacNeil truly shines.

As Iva’s mind begins to deteriorate, and her nurses prove themselves incompetent, Margaret’s role shifts to that of a caregiver. Despite their strained relationship, Margaret is able to bridge the gap between Iva and her nurses. She offers Iva a level of respect and support that finally breaks down Iva’s walls.

As Iva begins to share more of her past with Margaret, readers gain a better understanding of why Iva was the way she was — and so does Margaret. She initially takes on the caregiver role as penance for keeping so many years worth of secrets. But as she begins to better understand Iva, and sees the poor care she’s receiving from her nurses, Margaret begins to change as well, relaxing her set-in-stone convictions and developing a strong voice of her own.

As long-kept secrets are revealed and the two women become less extreme in their individual outlooks, they begin to develop a new kind of relationship — one that’s built on empathy, shared experience and maybe even a kind of sisterly love.

Keeper of Tides is a remarkable novel that shines an important light on the challenges of dementia, the destructive power of childhood trauma and the healing effect of friendship.

It also hits on an oft-forgotten truth: that within each mother, father, friend or enemy, there’s a vibrant past that has made them who they are — a history full of old loves, treasured friendships, regret and hope.